Movie Review Mid90’s

Ash Wiggins

Mid90’s is a film in two distinct traditions of skating and how you

skate. Mid90’s follows the main character (Stevie), a thirteen-year-old
in the 90s-era LA who spends his summer navigating between his
troubled home life and a group of new friends that he meets at a
“Motor Avenue skate shop”. This movie involves Stevie navigating
between troubled home life and a crew of new friends he meets at a
Skate shop.

The opening scene is Stevie being beaten up by his brother Ian.

Throughout you see Ian ambushing Stevie and chasing him around the
house beating him up punching and pummelling him, also Attacking
him while he sleeps most of these Attacks are after Stevie goes into
Ian’s room. I think These fights give a sense of realism to the movie.
Later in the movie Stevie is having lunch with his new crew of friends
when he sees his brother walk by and his friend unintentionally skates
into him were we see things get heated, Ian realises he is unmatched
and would lose the fight if initiated, Ian then slowly backs up whilst
looking at Stevie. I think this gives Stevie a feeling of protection and
safety when around his new friends and power over his brother when
he is with his friends.

Stevie comes to realisation that his new friends are “for real” and gets
pulled into their world of not caring about the consequences and trying
to have fun while they can with Ray being the “coolest in the group”
having a chance to pursue a career in skating as he catches the eyes of
pro skaters. The rest of the crew are just trying to have fun go to
parties and avoid going to home, later in the movie Stevie shows up to
the skate shop with bruises all over him from his brother Ian. Ruben
starts by calling him names and calling him weak then they all get into
an argument splitting them up for the day. Later ray has a sit down
talk with Stevie about how he should be grateful for what he has, he
talks about some of the boys home life and how they all have big
problems of their own and he says “If you could have a look in any of
thee closets you probably wouldn’t trade your stuff for their stuff so
you got to be grateful”. This brings these two characters closer
together and cheers Stevie up for the day.
The movie Mid90’s shows different cultures of skating and how you can
skate most skating stereotypes are skaters not caring about
consequences and skating where and when they are not allowed. It
shows the introduction of Stevie to the new world of skating and its
culture, but also how it changes and influences Stevie from being a
nice raised well boy to a nuisance.